Nick Fasulo is an RTC correspondent who writes the column College Basketball By the Tweets, a look at the world of college hoops through the prism of everyone’s favorite social media platform. You can find him on Twitter @nickfasuloSBN.
Aside from a great night of hoops at the Champions Classic, week two of the college basketball season was fairly tame, as hungry fans await the always entertaining Feast Week. There’s been a of talk lately about how college basketball is an eroding sport, but don’t tell that to Tim Brando, who was giving his undivided attention to the Champions Classic on Tuesday night.
And Brando couldn’t be any more spot on, as the now annual event did not disappoint last Tuesday. Michigan State snuck past Kansas due to great late game execution on offense, while Duke’s experience was too much for Kentucky’s youth. A fantastic four hours of hoops.
Calipari, Duke & Flopping
The incident that sparked the most witty tweets this week? That would unquestionably be John Calipari‘s public indictment of Duke’s uncanny ability to flop around the basket. Cal dropped the zinger to Andy Katz while heading into the locker room at half time, when the Wildcats trailed the Blue Devils by two.
The tweets came in droves…
Never one to back down, Coach K did not shy away from offering a response to Calipari during his post-game press conference.
https://twitter.com/laurakeeley/status/268581608834101248
It’s these sorts of entertaining moments that keep me going.
The Freeing of Shabazz Muhammad
When the news broke on a Friday night, the name of the #2 player from the class of 2012 was seventh highest trending topic… in the world.
That’s big time stuff.
But the decision by the NCAA to allow Muhammad to suit up for the UCLA Bruins this season has a bit of a twist, as a conversation overheard on a commuter flight earlier this month could have ruined the NCAA’s case against Shabazz. The hype machine is now working overtime. The Bruins could be the best team out west, and a true Final Four contender.
North Carolina’s Ongoing Academic Fraud Saga
As one of college basketball’s few true blue bloods, UNC has done a fantastic job maintaining a squeaky clean image and averting the NCAA police. But the run may soon be coming to an end, as reports about potential academic fraud committed by athletes at the school re-surfaced over the weekend, as a whistleblower has emerged, and the trolls are coming out in full force.
You never want to see a program get penalized or fall apart, but with the success had on Chapel Hill, winning national championships and never even sniffing scrutiny, only means that haters are gonna pounce when given such low hanging fruit.